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How did this story go again?
How did this story go again? this is a choose your own adventure type book that starts with the passage below. Congratulations! You have been born into the world of Lieterra. What kind of being are you? human, elf, orc, halfling, half-elf, half-orc, dragonborn, goblinoid, or gnome? Followed paths Rudy the Dragonborn. done by Fang and Zarra. ah yes the dragonborn, how could i forget, smaller dragons that are more like humans, but still fierce and you are still a dragon after all. you are two-years old today. your parents gave you three presents. a toy sword, a toy scepter, and a stuffed teddy bear. which one would you rather play with? Toy sword you are now 7 years old, enjoying your toy sword and keeping it at your side at every turn. uh oh! some bigger kids are picking on you. how do you respond? go in the corner and cry, call them names back, tell an adult, or swing your toy weapon? tell an adult you told the closest adult which happened to be the town butcher that all of you and your parents know. you are a dragon after all, and what's a dragon without meat? the butcher brandished his cleaver and threatened to tell their parents. they apologized (albeit through gritted teeth and with evil looks back in your direction) and leave." 'look kid' says the butcher 'gotta learn to take care of your own problems some point. next year is the DAT, try to figure out which part you want to really know' the butcher is right, you know the Dragon Aptitude Test is coming. which part should you study for? the warrior section, the mage section, the economic section, or the leadership section? Warrior section you decided on that day that you won't have an adult stand up for you again. you decided to study for the warrior section, almost regretfully neglecting the other sections in your pursuit. between your fun times pretending to be a warrior with your toy sword and now your actual studies of the warrior ways. you are Very good at what you want to do. and that is becoming a warrior for your town. the following year at 8-years old, you take your DAT, excelling in what you want. although your other skills are definitely lacking. after the test is completed and the results are tallied, a letter arrives at your home and your parents read it to tell you that you passed and now the elders are wanting you to start actual training 2 years early. what do you say? would you like to start your warrior dream 2 years early, or wait till age ten when most warriors start? wait You told your parents that you were absolutely thrilled at the offer, but you declined. your father looked a little disappointed, but they both happily relay the decision to the Elders. your next year is filled with normal schooling and more of your personal warrior training that you do by yourself. all the while thrilled that the elders thought so highly of you. but what is this? those kids are back, and one of them did well in the warrior section too, but he didn't get an invitation to skip ahead. he is angry. and he comes at you. you have to fight now, but how do you do it? go fully on this kid? you can totally take him down. Lose on purpose to make him feel better? make it a good fight? or end it quickly and quietly? good fight you know that you can just end this kid quickly, but you decide that you should fight him fair and maybe toy with him a little. he keeps trying to go after you, but you just dodge or parry and then hit him back. you have punched him few times, once right in his nose and one gave him a black eye. he is breathing hard and you are still doing just fine. but then you feel something cold on the back of your neck. a knife. a real knife. one of the other kids has it pressed against your scales the point just underneath them. 'you should stop now. while you are ahead' says the second kid. 'let him beat you, or lose more than your dignity.' what is your choice? force the loss, continue the fight, try to turn on this kid, or scream for help? force the loss You decide that this weapon is too much to mess with. at least not right now. you sigh and slump a little. 'okay' you whisper to the kid with the knife. 'good choice' he whispers back and the knife slides out from your scales. very shortly after the kid in front of you pulls back and clocks you in the face. the world spins and you black out. after what seems like an hour, judging by the suns, you wake up right where you were left. you check yourself in a puddle of water, you have a black eye, and you find that your toy sword is missing. you go home, defeated. your mother notices your black eye immediately and starts fawning over you. you let her and then go to bed after supper. life continues, and then you are 10 years old. warrior training officially begins today! the elders that are presiding over the ceremony welcome the new class and one gives you a wink, clearly recognizing you from your DAT. the proper training is not easy. but it definitely could be more difficult. you learn how to properly wield a real blade and techniques for sword fighting. there are other classes like maths, common, and basic sciences, but your focus is completely on your training. you are now twelve years old. and the kid that gave you that black eye three years ago approaches you. he doesn't look menacing today. how do you greet him? with a smile and friendly 'hello'? with silence, you can wait for him to talk? or with aggression, you won't let him get the first move on you? Silence, wait for him to talk as you wait for him to talk, you have both definitely grown in the past three years. both from age and from training. he comes over and gives you a slight smile. 'Hey' he says 'i was talking to my friend and he said he threatened your life that day. i didn't appreciate it. i stole your sword. and i wanted to give it back.' he produces the toy sword your parents gave you all those years ago. how do you react? softly, hardly, or somewhere in between? in between you are predisposed to not like this kid from your previous encounters. but you recognize that look in his eyes that truly means he is sorry. you take the toy sword and give him a look somewhere between a smirk and a glare. 'i didn't appreciate either. your friend should learn his place.' He agrees and laughs a little. He leaves and conks his friend on the back of the head and sits back at his own table. you enjoy the rest of your lunch and appreciate the sentiment of your toy sword. which now looks like a tiny wooden knife in your teenage claws. another two years pass and you are coming into Dragonborn adulthood. 15 years of age, 7 years of schooling and 5 years of warrior training. you have done well in your training and are given the choice to stay home as a guard, go abroad as a member of the army, or go off on your own adventure. which do you choose? stay home as a guard you decide that standing guard is the best option for now. the elders place you as a guard at the front gate of your village. you have two others that guard this gate with you. a relatively old guy with a spear. and a lovely female dragonborn with a halberd. you cannot help yourself but feel smitten with the dragonnette. do you give in to these feelings? let them linger for a while? or smash them, you are not ready for a relationship? let the feelings linger that's probably a good decision, You don't exactly know how to act on these feelings anyway. after another year of your guard duty, you learn her name is Kivara. She enjoys a nice steak and slicing up the occasional bandit. not really surprising for a dragonguard. but she hasn't been truly able to test her prowess in battle since before you joined the dragonguard. you and Kivara have become fairly good friends and enjoy each others company over that year. unfortunately you don't get much action here, you get some travelers and merchants. there is a rogue bandit or a wild beast every so often, but no real challenges for you, Kivara, and the old spearman. one day in battle against a dire boar that came charging the gate, you see Kivara in a ray of wondrous sunlight as she slays the beast. your heart pounds in your ears as she approaches you. 'this kind of thing is getting boring. i wonder if i should give my job to another dragonguard.' what do you suggest? go with her on an adventure? offer to change to the outgoing guard? or babble incoherently about how gorgeous she is? offer to join the outgoing guard you offer that Kivara should go join the outgoing guard if she is bored here at the gate. she looks at you with this look that you can't refuse. 'will you come with me to join them?' she says in this voice that is somewhere between commanding, seductive, and downright adorable. well, will you? yes or no. yes You enthusiastically say 'Yes' and after your shift, you and Kivara go to see the elders about changing jobs. through your year of service and Kivara's four, you have proven to be wonderful guards, even if your year was not very exciting. they accept your request, but require another year before the next class get's assigned. simply put, they need to find replacements before they let their front gate be guarded with two less dragonguard. you both are happy with this decision and the year passes without issue. you are now 17, Kivara is 20 and two new dragonguard show up at the front gate for duty. they are scrawny little things and one shakes just standing before you. you look to Kivara, worried that they can't properly guard the gate. what do you do? offer to stay to work with the new dragonguard and assess their skills? leave to join the outgoing guard and let the elders deal with the possible problem themselves? or offer to stay while Kivara joins the outgoing guard alone? work with the new dragonguard You offer to Kivara that you should probably make sure these new guard members are good enough for guard duty. you keep your current jobs as the five of you. no....wait....the four of you. the old spearman just had a heart attack out of old age. He never spoke much, but his last words to you were just a simple 'thank you' You are saddened by his passing, but you never got to know the old dragon. but he was a good fighter and you give his children a gift of custom at his funeral. So,You, Kivara, Zick, and Crinn stand guard at the front gate now. Crinn is the one that shakes but after another four months of standing guard with absolutely nothing but minor details, you finally learn why. The boy is insane, but in a good way. 3 highwaymen try to storm in the gate with you four standing there. as You and Kivara get ready to keep them off with halberd and sword in hand, Crinn says something in a small voice, and then his eyes bleed fire and his muscles swell. He grabs a massive hammer that Crinn keeps leaning against the wall and rushes to face the Highwaymen head-on. in one Giant cleave, the hammer smashes through them and they are thrown in a heap to the side of the road. You and Kivara look back to each other as mega-Crinn comes back to the gate to re-take his position. his form returns and he leans against the wall with a sigh. Well, Crinn is certainly capable. but what about Zick? you turn to Kivara again and say something. what is it? 'Crinn has this handled, we should be alright to leave now.'? 'Crinn should have this handled, but what can Zick do'? or 'i don't like whatever caused Crinn to do that. we should tell the elders'? what can Zick do? You tell Kivara that although it looks like Crinn can handle the job alone, you want to know why Zick is here. Instead of waiting months to figure it out like before, Kivara goes to Zick and simply asks the kid. Zick shrugs and pulls a knife out from under his coat. They point to a bush about 50 feet away and says 'this is what i do.' Zick throws the knife with great speed and skill. It disappears into the bush and you hear a small squeak. Upon your inspection, that knife struck a rabbit through the bush. Rather impressive young dragons aren't they? With your test of the new dragonguard completed. You and Kivara bid them good luck and farewells as you go back to the elders for your job change. They accept and you are placed in a crew together that is currently slated to leave in eight months for a very long job. What do you do in the meantime? Spend the time with your parents? With Kivara? Or get a pet and train it? get a pet and train it. You decide you want to get a pet, likely as a hunting companion while on the road. Kivara comes with you to the pet store to 'help choose' but she just pets everything there. But what do you choose? Dog, Cat, Fox, Lizard, or weasel? Dog You decided to get a dog. at the pet store there are many dogs, but none seem to catch your heart. although every single one catches Kivara's pets. after the store you instead go to the local shelter to find one that will catch your heart. there are three dogs that do. Vila, a small white fluffy dog that is full of energy. she is about two and a half and keeps wanting to play. Foran, a brown dog that looks built for battle. he is 4 years old and stands by your side, coming up to your waist. And Yiga, a big black old dog that just comes up and lays on your feet. he is 8 and comes up to your shoulder. which one stole your heart? Vila, Foran, or Yiga? Yiga "You pay the adoption fee and you take Yiga away from the shelter. before you head home though you realize that you need to get all the amenities. since Yiga is an older dog that was in the shelter, he was taken care of quite well. the village Dragonborn take care of hunting animals. and as it turns out Yiga was only there because his owner died and no one could take him. Yiga is already proving loyal as you go to pet stores and get a nice bed and toys for him that Kivara picked out and Yiga knows what he wants. an elk antler, a rubber ball, a stuffed raccoon with no squeaker, and bed that resembles a large pillow more than a bed. you also get food, food bowls, the whole thing. the amenities set you back a little bit, but you can already tell that this dog was a great decision. He is calm at home, guards the house and barks only at the owner of the coffee shop across the street when he accidentally burns his morning brew. you admit it's a strange quirk, but Yiga is definitely a good dog. and Kivara totally thinks so too as Yiga is already well-trained in guarding his owner. speaking of Kivara, your new girlfriend has practically moved in with you for these past few months. she spends more time at your place then at her place. at exactly one month before you are scheduled to leave on your first outgoing guard assignment something happens. at home, with Yiga on the floor by the hearth and Kivara on your arm, you are are reading a book together and she kisses you out of the blue. And that seals it. your harbored feelings for her spring back to life and you indulge in the feeling. 5 days before your scheduled time to leave, you two get married and in Dragonborn culture, there is no greater honor than having your wife be also your Shieldmaiden comrade. and here you are. Yiga the almost 9-year old battle dog on one side of you, and your badass spear wielding wife on the other. your squadron of 10 dragonguard, 2 dogs, a weasel, a cat, and a frog set out on your first assignment of the outgoing guard. the task? to search an ancient tomb of orcs as there have been mysterious sightings and missing people cases going on. the elders think you could have done with less, but the orcs think otherwise, so the dragonborn elders oblige with your mid-sized squadron. the trek takes about a month and you arrive at the tomb. 'Right!' says the squad leader 'this is the place. heard things like ghosts and missing people going on here. our goal is to clear it out and the orcs are giving us whatever we find in there, so long as the spirits are cleared and the missing people found. Clear!' **Clear!** your squad says in return. you all make your way into the tomb. most with weapons in one hand and torches in the other. those with two-handed weapons just stick close to another, like Kivara to you. very quickly you are met with a large chamber with 5 paths. the squad leader turns to the group. 'Well. pick your path' he says. what choice do you make, from the left to right is 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. or you can suggest sticking together?." stick together You suggested that the squad should stick together. the leader looks at you, blinks twice, and starts to chuckle. He builds into a laugh before speaking. 'y-you are kidding me right? there's no way what ever is in here can take more than two of us on at a time.' seems you aren't gonna get through to him, you can either pick a path or leave in frustration. path 3 You, Kivara and Yiga head down the middle path, the group disperses to have a pair of dragonguard go down each path with whatever pets were accompanying them. the leader went down the first. this path comes to a very abrupt end as your torch light reveals that the floor has fallen away, you look down and you see crumbled stone, metal spikes, and an orc corpse impaled on them. looks like they got caught by the trap. you see on the far side of the fallen floor that there is just a wall, so no point in trying to cross to nothing. Yiga paws at a crack in the wall. so, shall you turn around or follow Yiga? follow Yiga 'What is it boy?' you ask as you go where Yiga was scratching at the wall. sliding your fingers along the crack, you find a small secret hatch that is unfortunately too small for you, Kivara, or Yiga to fit through, but with the light of your torch you can see the space turn to the right and then nothing past it. as you can't do anything to get through the hatch, your trio heads back to the center room. which path would you like to head down next? or you Can just leave....if you want. path 1 going down the first path, the same one as the squad leader and the dragonguard that had a weasel. this path has a wall sconce every 15 feet and the path winds right, left, left, right, left, right, right, straight, and then another left before you find something of note. a pile of sand in the center of the hall, you note a buckler and a handaxe on the ground next to it. you exchange worried looks with Kivara and continue down the hall. next of note is another circular room and you see the squad leader sitting against the wall. he is missing an arm and is using the other to pet a weasel. he looks up 'oh hey. soooo maybe you were right. the traps in this place have proven lethal for sure. we lost one to a magic beam trap and it caught my arm too. poor bastard got disintegrated.' he sighs and pets the obviously sad weasel at it's owner's death. 'you guys find anything?' what do you say? simply say 'nothing' or tell all? tell all you explain that down the center path is a pitfall that had an orc corpse in it, the small hatch on the side, and the pile of sand you found on your way here. 'yep, well that dust was gorgo, and that orc corpse is on of our missing persons. well. in here seems to part of our payment.' He motions to a large chest in the center of the room. 'got roughly 8000 gold worth of coins and gems and such in there.' He stands and the weasel follows him. 'come on, there's nothing else here, lets bring this back and check on the others.' You and Kivara nod and carry the chest as the six of you head back through the long hallway, sidestepping the pile of Gorgo sand. the leader takes the buckler and handaxe as you walk by and continue back to the center. You notice that down path two is a fresh, and large, spattering of blood. before you go to investigate the blood, you hear two screams from path 4 and the pair that went down there come running back, and the pair from path 5 come back as well 'what's going on?' you all start trying to ask the path 4 crew, but they just yell 'Run!' and keep going back to the entrance. what do you do? run with them, stand your ground here to wait for whatever they were running from? or go investigate path 4 yourself? stand ground you decide to stand your ground here, leaving the chest on the ground. You, Kivara, and Yiga make a front line, followed by the leader and the weasel, in the back is the other two. one pulls out a crossbow, and one pulls out a wand. the one with the wand has his frog on his shoulder and croaks angrily. 'hush, we aren't leaving these to whatever that was alone.' you feel appreciation for your comrades as they stay with you. there are large thumps that get closer and closer. thump, Thump, THUMP. and then out of the shadows of path 4 comes a frail looking elf walking with a cane. 'oh, hello dears. can i help you?' the leader leans forward to whisper 'you take care of this, be careful' How can this elf help you? by you killing them quickly? by them explaining themself? or let them do whatever they are going to do? explain themself 'Explain yourself!' you bark at them, Yiga growling at the elf for effect. 'What is going on in here?' The elf looks at you and your group 'why i assure you that I am not sure. this is my home, and those two were trespassing. in fact' the elf starts to morph and change shape as they turn into a Bulette. a terrifying creature that you know only from stories. you remember you must watch out for it's leap. what do you do? rush in? hold your ground? flee? hold ground You try to ready yourself for whatever this creature is going to do. it reels back and leaps at the group. it lands in the center, sending most of you flying from the impact. however the leader is pinned under one foreclaw and the weasel under another. The Squadron Leader gives one last look to you before his head is removed and eaten by the Bulette. This creature has sent 2 of your squad running, likely set the traps that killed Gorgo and the two that went down the second path, and you just watched it behead your leader. you have one final chance. do you fight or run?